Abstract
The higher education sector, always linked to the production and diffusion of knowledge and closely committed to the progress of communities, felt, particularly with the arrival of the new millennium, the impendance of a set of circumstances that emphasized its place as an agent of social, economic, cultural and environmental development of communities. Expectations for the role of higher education institutions, especially public universities, have never been higher and their acting circumstances have never been so challenging. In an environment where the competition in education stands out, the reduced of state support, the need for external funding, the need to appeal to academic entrepreneurship and the demand for an ethical and transparent attitude, communication skills are valued as they assume the role of fostering the fulfillment of the mission of universities, which seems to depend on the constant interaction with the increasingly diverse and demanding institutional audiences. It is in this relationship that we subscribe our research, which seeks to demystify the relationship between the phenomena of communication and social responsibility in organizations, by means of an empirical study applied to the context of four Portuguese public universities: the University of Beira Interior, the University of Lisboa, the University of Minho and the University of Porto. Using the multiple case study as a research method, we sought to observe two phenomena: 1) the social mission of the Portuguese public universities, and 2) the role of organizational and strategic communication in fulfilling this mission. Based on this empirical study and the information gathered in the specialized literature, we trace the evolution of the mission of universities, from their foundation to the present, and conclude that their social role is linked to their foundation and, therefore, anchored in their identity and cultural traits. We also realize that, at a time when social demands are growing and challenging, organizational and strategic communication is a tool that helps universities realize their role as leading institutions in the social, economic, cultural and environmental progress of communities and the country
Translated title of the contribution | Communicating to be socially responsible: the role of communication in the fulfilment of the social mission of public Portuguese universities |
---|---|
Original language | Portuguese |
Supervisors/Advisors |
|
Publication status | Published - 22 Jun 2020 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Organizational and strategic communication
- Organizational mission
- Organizational social responsibility
- Public universities